For an established software development company, the first thing prospects saw when they searched for its reviews wasn’t client feedback — it was two negative Reddit threads. Neither could be deleted, and both ranked high enough to shape first impressions before any sales conversation began. Two months and $315 later, a single optimized thread had taken their place.
Client
A US-based software engineering company with more than 30 years of experience building web, mobile, cloud, and AI solutions for businesses — a track record that should speak for itself, unless search results tell a different story.
Goal
Push negative content out of Google’s top results for the “[Brand] reviews” query and build a positive presence for the brand on Reddit.
Task
Two negative threads from different subreddits ranked at the top of Google for this query. The client wanted both of them out of the top results — in Google and in Reddit’s own search. Deleting someone else’s thread wasn’t an option, so the solution had to work within the rankings themselves.
Strategy
Instead of fighting the negative threads directly, we proposed a suppression approach: creating stronger positive content that would replace them in search results.
Choosing the right query. We built the new thread around “[Brand] reviews”. Queries with “reviews” work best for suppressing negative content. It’s exactly what people search for when vetting a company before working with it, so a thread optimized for this query competes for the very same spot the negative discussions held.
One thread instead of many. Rather than spreading our efforts across several posts, we focused them on a single thread built to outrank both negative discussions at once — in Google and in Reddit search.
Brand-mention comments. Six comments mentioned the brand and turned the thread into a substantive discussion of what working with the company is actually like.
Engagement boost. Eight more comments added activity, so the thread read as a live conversation and gained the weight it needed to rank.
Results
Google. Our thread took the #1 organic position in Google (USA) for “[Brand] reviews”. The negative threads were pushed out of the top spots.
Reddit search. In Reddit’s own search, the thread also ranks #1 for the same query. Whether a prospect starts on Google or Reddit, the first thing they now see is a positive discussion instead of a negative one.
AI Overview. Above the organic results, Google’s AI Overview describes the brand in neutral-to-positive terms, highlighting client feedback on its flexibility, technical expertise, and cost-effective development.
Why It Worked
Reddit threads rank well for review-type queries because they offer what searchers want at that moment: first-hand discussion from real users. That’s also why a single negative thread can follow a brand for years. But the same logic works in reverse — if a negative thread can rank for “[Brand] reviews”, a better-optimized, more active thread can outrank it.
Three things made the difference here. The query matched real search intent, so the new thread competed for exactly the right spot. Putting everything into one thread kept the effort from being diluted. And the comments gave the thread both substance and the activity it needed to climb the rankings.
Conclusion
Negative threads rarely disappear on their own. What a brand can control is what shows up above them. This case shows that Reddit reputation management doesn’t require a big budget or a long campaign: one well-built thread, 14 comments, and two months were enough to change what prospects see first. For companies whose sales cycle starts with a search for reviews, that first impression is worth protecting.
Hi! I'm Viktoriia 👋
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